Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84322 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84322 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 422(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
“You’re always beautiful. How’s my girl today?”
My heart fluttered at his response, as it always did when he spoke to me. He revered me like a queen, it seemed, always showing me kindness and care. I’d never dated anyone like him, where there were no games, no pretenses of trying to play hard to get. We knew from the moment we met that we liked each other, and we didn’t bullshit.
We dated, and became exclusive after a week, and from that moment on, I never had to wonder what I meant to him.
Healthy relationships were weird.
“Tired,” I answered with a croaky voice. I rubbed my throat at the sound, frowning. I had a podcast to record in two days, and that was not the sound I needed to hear. “But otherwise, good. It’s been nonstop since my plane landed.”
“I caught on to that, based on how little we’ve been texting,” he teased. The freckles on his cheeks danced with his smile, and when he propped his head up on one elbow, I was distracted by his firm bicep, wishing I could lie on his chest and feel that arm wrapped around me. “How’s my favorite person?”
“I just told you how I am.”
“I meant Aunt Laura.”
I chuckled. “She’s still weird, which is just how I like her. And she’s still obsessed with you, too.”
“Hey, you told me I had one person to win over, and I didn’t take that lightly.”
“I said win her over, not make her second in line to marry you if I don’t.”
We both laughed at that, but I didn’t miss the way his forest green eyes watched me, curiously — like he was wondering if I’d been thinking about us like that.
Thinking about marriage.
Jacob and I had only been dating for a little over seven months, but I knew after just three that he was serious about his intentions with me. Whereas I was intent on going slow, having fun, enjoying just dating, I could feel his need for more as time passed. He’d casually brought up what kind of ring I would want, how I would want to be proposed to, what kind of house I’d like, where I’d like to set roots, if I wanted kids…
It was all normal, necessary conversation for a couple in a healthy relationship.
But for some reason, every time we went there, I clammed up.
“How’s work?” I asked, changing the subject before it could linger too long on the M word. Jacob was in the influencer world like me, except his focus centered around fitness. He had five-hundred-thousand followers on Instagram, many who paid top dollar for his CrossFit videos and sported his brand on their t-shirts, tank tops, hats, and more like it was Nike. When we’d first started dating, we did a collaboration, him designing a runner-focused clothing line with my name on it, and me hosting a seven-week motivation podcast series with him.
And just like that, our relationship became a public entity, too.
“Busy,” he said on a sigh, but his smile was proud. “I’m nearly doubling my subscribers on the app every week, which blows my mind, so I’ve been scrambling to up my content on there so there’s plenty for them to digest once they subscribe. And I have that video shoot with HIIT Magazine tomorrow.”
“Oh, that’s right!” I sat up, excited. “You’re going to look so hot with all that sweat dripping off you. Send me some behind-the-scenes clips?”
I waggled my brows, and Jacob shook his head, though his eyes devoured me hungrily then, especially when he saw my hardened nipples under the tank top I was wearing, the thin, built-in bra doing nothing to hide my arousal.
“Why don’t you call me tomorrow night, and I’ll give you a private show?”
I made a lewd gesture that had us both laughing, and then I sighed, leaning toward the screen to study his smile. “You’re amazing, you know that?”
“Just trying to keep up with my superstar girlfriend.”
I scoffed.
“I’m serious,” he said. “Don’t downplay what you’ve built, Jaz. It’s amazing. Trust me, I know a lot of podcasters, and none of theirs are as lucrative as yours.”
I flushed, tucking the strands of hair falling from the messy bun on my head behind my ears. “It feels surreal sometimes,” I admitted. “Like someone is going to call me one of these days and tell me they made a mistake and all those deposits in my bank account were meant for someone else and they need all the money back.”
Jacob chuckled. “Well, believe it, babe. That green is all yours.”
“Speaking of which,” I said, stomach churning a little. “I really need to figure out a budget and how to save. I’ve never seen money like this in my life,” I admitted, which wasn’t news to Jacob. He knew everything about my past, about my upbringing, and though I never told him exact numbers, he knew I made well over six figures with my business now.